LA’s housing shortage threatens the city’s economy. Just 11% of Angelenos can afford a median-priced home, which means long commutes or moving to another place. Mayor Villaraigosa wants 200 million a year in city money to help subsidize 20,000 units for the poor and the middle class. Will upper income homeowners have to pay part of the tab? Will they have to share their neighborhoods? Will the plan generate needed private investment in the midst of the credit crisis?

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LA’s housing shortage threatens the city’s economy. Just 11% of Angelenos can afford a median-priced home, which means long commutes or moving to another place. Mayor Villaraigosa wants 200 million a year in city money to help subsidize 20,000 units for the poor and the middle class. Will upper income homeowners have to pay part of the tab? Will they have to share their neighborhoods? Will the plan generate needed private investment in the midst of the credit crisis?

First, Mayor Villaraigosa’s affordable housing program. The Mayor would mandate what’s now voluntary under state law. In new projects with 20 or more units, up to 22.5 percent would be reserved for low or moderate-income families. The city would put up 200 million dollars a year and hope to leverage up to a billion from private sources. But the proposal comes at a time when banks are crashing and credit is scarce.